Blu-ray Review: How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days: Deluxe Edition (2003)

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When faced with the overwhelming plethora of self-help books unleashed on the masses on a weekly basis, the only logical response is laughter. While topics may run the gamut mostly the material (which preys on the brokenhearted and vulnerable) utilizes common sense that reasonably intelligent and well-adjusted individuals should already possess by the age of twelve. Of course the key is in the marketing and the all-important "gimmick" as common sense is repackaged with catchphrases, convoluted systems, untested rules, cliched secrets and/or silly new-age nonsense all for the price of $24.95 in hardcover.

And despite the success of some of the works whether they become an Oprah endorsed effort like The Secret or a feature film like He's Not Just That Into You, possibly the best way to turn the thinly disguised self-loathing genre frequently directed at women around is to use the idiocy of it to inspire a humorous response.

And that is exactly what two good friends Michelle Alexander and Jeannie Long did when they chatted about the craze that swept the nation after publishers released The Rules that consisted of a so-called foolproof way to snag the man of your dreams.

With The Rules as a jumping off point, Alexander and Long joked back and forth about the worst "rules" and personal mistakes and anecdotes they could think of to drive away the man of their dreams as a sort of "how to" dating guide in reverse. Fittingly, this is the nearly identical description that Kate Hudson's journalist Andie Anderson makes shortly into the feature film based on their humorous book, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days.

And while much to their amusement and amazement, bookstores frequently place Alexander and Long's comedic work into the "self-help" section-- perhaps by this point not being able to get the joke due to how much garbage normally fills that department of the store-- luckily producers Lynda Obst, Robert Evans, and Christine Peters got the joke and realized the potential for a clever romantic comedy goldmine in the original source material.

Overseen by Paramount's then studio head Sherry Lansing, the film benefited greatly not only by the instantaneous chemistry between Kate Hudson and Matthew McConaughey but also by ensuring that in front of and behind the camera, both genders were represented and able to keep the humor consistently watchable.

Helmed by Grumpy Old Men, Mystic Pizza, and Miss Congeniality director Donald Petrie, the work that was adapted by screenwriters Kristen Buckley, Brian Regan and Igby Goes Down filmmaker Burr Steers uses the standard cliche of a romantic bet as the impetus for its humor but luckily the movie quickly kicks into high gear in ways we haven't seen before.

For then as San Francisco Chronicle critic Mick LaSalle noted, "the movie reveals itself as a laugh machine, with jokes building on jokes and situations escalating into higher degrees of comic absurdity." And by bravely going against the overwhelming spirit of general loathing towards romantic comedies including titles like this one in his largely male dominated profession, LaSalle goes on to praise it as being a film that's "as close to French farce as romantic comedies get, and the closer the better."

Indeed evidence of this is there from the start as it will appeal to the same mistaken identity, unlikely coincidences, and "does he know that she knows that we know?" style of framing we've seen in French comedies by writer/directors like Francis Veber (The Closet, The Dinner Game, The Valet) among others. Yet overall I was struck by its zany, carefree approach and emphasis on back-and-forth one-upmanship gamely engaged in by our leads in what originally I viewed as a spirited throwback to screwball comedies.

Ambitious to put her graduate degree to good use by writing about things that matter such as politics, world peace and religion instead of being "the resident 'how to' girl" of Composure Magazine--their thinly disguised play on Vogue magazine, complete with Bebe Neuwirth tackling Anna Wintour-- Hudson's Andie pitches an entertaining spin on her usual column with her suggestion that hearkens to the film's title.

If she nails the column, Andie believes she'll be granted greater reign to write the pieces she's passionate about. So, finding this twist irresistible, she and her two friends set about "hooking a guy" before she will eventually "flip the switch" a.k.a. start doing everything in her power to send the man running by embracing the type of female behavior that often leads to not only break-ups but in Andie's decision to step things up a notch, nearly jail time... if that is, she had been dating any other guy than Benjamin Barry.

For while the film endears us to Andie and her delightful yet devious plight, we're simultaneously introduced to her cinematic combination of intellectual equal/professional rival/love interest as personified by McConaughey's smug yuppie Benjamin Barry. The Andie of his office, early into the movie Ben tries to convince his own dominant boss to give him the chance to try something new as well in his advertising agency. And just like Andie is tired of playing it safe writing "how to" columns most likely read quickly in beauty salons, Ben is tired of always getting the beer commercial and sports equipment contracts. Thus, when a wealthy diamond ad campaign is dangled his way, he makes a bet that he has what it takes to make women fall in love with both diamonds and himself.

Not willing to give in, two of Ben's gorgeous female colleagues who'd met with Andie's boss at Composure earlier that day happen to see the "how to" writer in the same bar at precisely the right moment. Taking advantage of this, the ladies appreciate his challenge and set up Ben to see if he can manage to make the beguiling blonde in the gray dress fall head over heels in love with him. Knowing full well that it's her job to drive Ben away for her column, the ladies feel confident that they've secretly stacked the deck in their favor but cocky Ben takes the bet and the bait and luckily the two clique romantically, leaving for dinner each unaware of the other person's agenda.

Since there's an element of game-playing involved in the dating scene before you add these wildly dubious yet fun plot contrivances into the mix anyway, the movie has you smiling along in recognition at the heightened world of cinematic Manhattan that couldn't be further from reality but once Hudson's Andie becomes the off-balanced, unpredictable one woman rollercoaster near the end of a Knicks game on their second date, we're as surprised and entertained by her ease to move in and out of hysterics as Ben is irritated and thoroughly confused.

Soon the movie is filled with improvisational scenes and outrageous yet mind-blowingly funny exaggerations of standard situational battles of the sexes. And admittedly while Andie and Ben's behavior never feels authentic, due to the farcical and screwball style format that's evident in their rhyming alliteration friendlyy AA and BB names of "if A then B," we know it's not supposed to be and the sheer pleasure of the movie is in watching the two play off each other with comedic abandon.

Unfortunately and despite the stunning oft-copied and coveted yellow gown worn by Kate Hudson in a pivotal sequence and a few cute moments in the lukewarm "aww, they actually like each other" predictable meet-the-parents scenario, the movie derails significantly in its overly long final act. When they inevitably learn the truth about the lies or rather their respective bets, it culminates in a nails on the blackboard sounding rendition of "You're So Vain" as a couple's fight is accompanied by Marvin Hamlisch on piano.

And in this cringe worthy, fast-forward necessary scene in particular, I'm always brought out of entertained viewer mode and shoved back into critic mode, wondering why at least the last twenty to thirty minutes weren't reworked to be if not on par than at least strong enough to follow the hilarity of the beginning since these scenes couldn't have tested well with audiences.

However, there's no going back to reshoot the unfortunate segments six years later and Kate and Matthew's movie reunion of Fool's Gold make the flaws of Days feel brilliant even when Days launches into rom-com auto-pilot mode complete with Andie penning a Never Been Kissed like confessional and Ben chasing Andie down in traffic Wedding Planner style.

Without any footage of the actors discussing their work or inclusion of the two on a commentary track, the Deluxe Edition doesn't feel very deluxe. As a person who owned the previously released DVD, I can attest that it is indeed a step up visually and likewise accentuates the cinematographer's decision to make everything look unbelievably beautiful, sometimes to overly air-brushed, photo-shopped, or magazine like effect in a candy colored MGM in the '50s vibe. However, comparatively, the picture difference isn't that great and moreover the Blu-ray includes a satisfactory yet again unbalanced soundtrack that distributes the background noise and dialogue unevenly throughout.

While HD extras have been added, the new inclusions are thin all around, containing commentary with director Donald Petrie and a few short featurettes about the making of the movie including its background as a comedic book version as the opposite of The Rules, deleted scenes, and a pointless extra about "Why the Sexes Battle" where scientists are brought in basically to sell the movie in terms of medical or historical authenticity analyzing behavior patterns. Overall, as a guilty pleasure favorite, it's one I'd definitely recommend but one in which you can similarly way the pros and cons before making the upgrade to Blu-ray... unless like Andie and Ben, you're fine with taking your chances on a bet.


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Movie Review: Ghosts of Girlfriends Past (2009)

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A tender phrase used by the more chivalrous old-school gentlemen—the kind that still open doors, walk nearest to the street on sidewalks, and send flowers on days other than anniversaries, Valentine’s Day and birthdays—is to call the women in their life their “better half.” However, when it comes to Connor Mead (Matthew McConaughey)—the James Bond who’s all smarm without the charm and Alfie without the accent or Michael Caine’s winning twinkle in his eye—there is no better half.

Despite this, he soldiers on and temporarily fills the void with plenty of one tenths to one fourths in an endless parade of Maxim meets GQ like skanks he manages to nail and drop as if the swinging ‘70s had never ended with the dawn of AIDS in the ‘80s. This all occurs via “relationships” that last anywhere from a few minutes in an airplane bathroom to two weeks at most before he dumps three women simultaneously while trying to shag another one via a video conference call at the start of the film.

Video Clip:
A Break-up in “Bulk”

The closest thing one could consider to be a better half in Connor’s life would be a full one-- a full person that is-- in the form of his younger brother Paul (Breckin Meyer).

Scheduled to be married to his adoring sweetheart (Lacey Chabert)-- unfortunately given the stereotypical role of an anxiety-ridden Bridezilla who freaks out when figs aren’t included on the salads she ordered; Paul is not only everything that McConaughay’s narcissistic classless cad is not but a staunch reminder when the two are next to each other that there’s absolutely nothing to like about our leading man.

Video Clip:
I Can’t Toast This

Of course, a movie about two crazy-in-love kids getting married isn’t the stuff that makes studios instantly green-light a picture—unless of course the bride turns into Bridezilla during the honeymoon as the groom meets a new dream girl (as was the case in the misogynistic Farrelly brothers remake of The Heartbreak Kid) or in two other Ben Stiller vehicles when he gets put through the mill after he's finally brought home to Meet the Parents and The Fockers.

And in—trying to squeeze in every romantic comedy cliché possible—there’s a little of Fockers inspired humor as Robert Forster tackles the role of Chabert’s former marine turned ordained minister father in one of the very, very few bright spots in this abysmal picture as a Korean war vet who just can’t seem to get over the fact that without a wall or a good movie, the only legacy the Korean war had was “a sitcom with Alan Alda.”

Couple this with Chabert’s sultry “MILF” Anne Archer as a woman Connor goes to second base with in a typically aggressive come-on and screenwriters Jon Lucas and Scott Moore seem to be milking the same terrain as their other New Line Cinema produced screenplay Four Christmases which—despite going a bit overboard in family dysfunction screenwriting exercises—had the pleasant bonus of actually making us laugh.

In Ghosts, McConaughey tries to rework the same tired shtick he’s done to better effect in the flawed but amusing How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days (save for the awful final act) and Failure to Launch (rescued by scene-stealer Zooey Deschanel).

The problem is that there isn’t one redeemable characteristic about his character in this film, nor any chemistry with Jennifer Garner, and foolishly the filmmakers chose the wrong plot-line to follow as they decide to center the action on a character we wouldn’t want to spend one second with let alone more than one hundred minutes as he goes through a Dickensian Christmas Carol or Scrooged night of confronting his history with women.

Essentially little more than a sex addict except with what we assume is more self-control than the character that Sam Rockwell brought to life in last year’s Choke-- there is one plot line that does show a bit of promise as the film’s “host” for the ghostly activities is embodied by Michael Douglas, playing a Hugh Hefner, vintage swinging lady-killer who’d schooled the boy in as a youth on how to seduce women.

Of course, what the filmmakers don’t realize despite some great comedic work by Douglas (who incidentally had also worked in Fockers territory with his turn in the remake of The In-Laws) is that—like most of the movie, this particular story has been already made to much better effect in Dylan Kidd’s ingenious and brilliantly written independent film smash Roger Dodger starring Campbell Scott and Jesse Eisenberg.

So by the time you add up all the ingredients from Alfie to Fockers to Dodger-- which should all be rented to avoid paying the price of admission for this film-- basically what we’re left with is an inevitable romantic comedy wherein the cad must come of age, find the error of his ways and win back the girl he’s been hung up on since childhood in Jennifer Garner’s conveniently named Jenny.

Of course, Garner’s winning girl-next-door charm instinctively gets us on her side but there’s absolutely zero chemistry with McConaughey throughout. Sadly, she’s forced to portray a woman he doesn’t deserve and moreover one who would be far better off with another character in the film than the one in which we see in a sequence of supernatural idiocy get nearly drowned by the rain of tears cried by women he’s played, tissues they’ve wasted and condoms he’s used. Yeah--good times --and nothing says “get the saintly doctor Jenny together with the waste of space Connor” quite like a veritable and nauseating rain of condoms.

An all-around ugly and sexist film (to both genders), it's a reminder that one of my previously favored, life-affirming, and uplifting genres—the romantic comedy—has completely hit rock bottom. Films like Ghosts of Girlfriends Past are not only an affront to audiences as we keep getting served garbage like this but they’re also a fervent reminder of the power of an audience to determine the type of movies with which we’re presented if we just avoided works such as the tale of Connor Mead like the plague even though it's salvaged at times by the old-school charms of Forster and Douglas.

And while of course, thanks to the star power of the leads (including the lovely Jennifer Garner who wasn’t paid nearly enough to even be in a single frame) and the seemingly untouchable McConaughey who keeps getting work despite an endless string of disasters—it will make money-- if only because women want something to see in the wake of testosterone-addled summer pictures.

Despite this, my hope is that word-of-mouth will make it vanish like one of many ghosts in the film’s tired plot—already explored in another previous Waters film—Just Like Heaven and screenwriters will have to go back to the rom-com drawing board in figuring out how to delight us once again in films that, when done correctly can live-on for decades like It Happened One Night, The Philadelphia Story, Annie Hall, Manhattan, Moonstruck, and When Harry Met Sally.

New on DVD & Blu-ray for the Week of 12/28/08

Jen's Pick of the Week

Alan Ball's
Independent Spirit Award Nominated
Towelhead

* Note: A few of the movies listed below are repeats-- with the holiday season, there were some conflicting ads regarding a few release dates so to keep you fully updated, here are the official titles and reviews (if applicable).

Likewise, as I'm still playing catch-up on my workload, please stay tuned for additional Blu-ray reviews of this week's releases of The Duchess, Ghost, and The Truman Show in the near future.

Days of Thunder (Blu-ray Review)

The Duchess (Blu-ray Review)

Eagle Eye (Blu-ray Review)

Ghost Town (Blu-ray Review)

Surfer, Dude (Blu-ray Review)

Towelhead

Explore The Top Releases
Below on Amazon.com:
Including Some Wonderful Old Favorites
From Universal Studios & Focus Features
Re-Released with "Movie Cash"

Blu-ray Review: Surfer, Dude (2008)

Catch a Wave
12/30/08

Surf Over to the Trailer & Photo Gallery

Fitting for a film that espouses surfer philosophy of peace and harmony between man and nature, "green" activists Woody Harrelson and Willie Nelson co-star alongside actor and producer Matthew McConaughey in Surfer, Dude. And despite its budget of six million dollars that looks as though it was spent on lavish location shoots and production design, you can bet that the filmmakers saved an awful lot of "green" when it came to the costume department. After all, it does star the incessantly topless McConaughey and for those of you who feel that seeing the blonde haired Texan shirtless only a few times per year just isn't quite enough-- rest assured you can get your fix in Dude which finds him fittingly "surf ready" (a.k.a. nearly nude) at all times.

Yet, far be it for the 100% male producers, screenwriters, cinematographer and director not to offer up some beach bunnies as well. For, have no fear, fellas-- silicone enhanced cleavage and topless women abound in the laid-back surf culture depicted in documentarian turned feature filmmaker S.R. Bindler's latest film.

A self-described "seven year labor of love," spearheaded by McConaughey and some of his oldest friends-- fans can consider both the real-life "naked bongo" arrest and the endless scenes of the actor shirtless (with little prompting) in previous films like Fool's Gold, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, Failure to Launch all rehearsal for the actor to fully get into the role of "longboarding soul surfer" and near full-time stoner Steve Addington.


The oft-cited "nature boy" of the sport-- shortly into the film, "Add" returns from an international trip surfing around the world back to a very different Malibu which is trying to cash in on riders who just love to catch a wave. With his clueless and bong-happy manager Jack (a hilarious Woody Harrelson) trying to talk some sense into the "mind open, heart enlarged, soul receptive" mantra spouting zen-like Add that they need to begin to "fertilize the money tree so it can keep growing," Add reluctantly listens to a pitch from retired surfer turned sell-out Eddie Zarno (Jeffrey Nordling).

Now the owner of Add's contract and eager to cut off his expense account if the laid-back surfer won't bend to his well, Zarno tries to force Addington to join his Cinemax styled MTV's The Real World meets Big Brother beach-house reality show and take part in a virtual reality video game to introduce "land-locked kids" in Kansas to both surfing and the digital revolution.


Angered by the prospect to become "some ass-clown in a green room," since by trade he tells others (including a hilarious introduction to airport security in the film's beginning) that he's "a surfer, dude," Add declines only to find himself hard up for cash and waves when there's a surf-drought and Malibu's waters go surf-less for roughly two months.


Building a relationship with Alexi Gilmore's Danni-- a beautiful and brainy East Coast businesswoman (whom Add of course simply dubs "East Coast") whose Master's Degree smarts and tech savvy kick in far too late upon discovering Zarno's a first-class sleaze-- Add, Danni, Jack, and his friends (Willie Nelson and Scott Glenn) help set him back on the right course back to surfing bliss.


While it's far more enjoyable than Fool's Gold on the "McConaughey Meter," Dude is bogged down by a ludicrously simplistic plot that inexplicably moved through countless drafts and four writers who toyed with it over the course of nearly a decade, making McConaughey's making-of-featurette confession that "this has been the most fulfilling creative experience I've ever had-- ever-- hands down," especially heartbreaking.


Additionally, it's curiously devoid of the actor's usual charm. And while this could've been because of the demands of the shoot and his having to wear numerous hats (and very few shirts) in getting the film made as we discover in the twenty-two minute behind-the-scenes documentary "Surfer, Dude, The Real Story" included on the Blu-ray disc, I was also left wondering if it was perhaps because of the poorly written characterization which doesn't give him an arc that justifies its eighty-five minute running time. Essentially-- while great as a one-sentence joke or a guaranteed laugh in a pitch room to hear about stoner surf gurus played by Nelson, Harrelson, and McConaughey-- as a project, Dude seems as though it would've worked best as a killer SNL skit.

Although he tries his damndest and he really manages to sell the persona-- mostly Addington feels like a repeatedly photo-copied and washed out hodgepodge of McConaughey's memorable character from Dazed and Confused blended with Sean Penn's stoner Jeff Spicoli in Fast Times at Ridgemont High and Jeff Bridges' The Dude from The Big Lebowski.


While admittedly, as a fan of both surf documentaries and classic cheesy surf films I did get a bigger kick out of it than most reviewers, overall Surfer, Dude seemed like it was desperate in need of more waves, humor, laughs, and the same easy-going, affable, and (cough) less pot-addled characters he always nails in even the smallest of roles such as recently playing Ben Stiller's agent in Tropic Thunder. Likewise it made me miss his stellar and often overlooked dramatic work in films like A Time to Kill, Frailty, Lonestar, Thirteen Conversations About One Thing, The Newton Boys, Amistad, and We Are Marshall.

Despite this-- for his fans, it's definitely worth a look and I'd rather watch a Surfer, Dude marathon over one additional screening of Fool's Gold and for that I do have to give major credit to a great part of the film's success in its beautiful lush near '70s look from masterful cinematographer Elliot Davis (Out of Sight, Twilight, I Am Sam). Continuing his awe-inspiring talent by improving upon lackluster material, in the past Davis has also managed to elevate B-movies such as Bronwen Hughes' Sandra Bullock/Ben Affleck Rom-Com Forces of Nature, John Schlesigner's Madonna/Rupert Everett vehicle The Next Best Thing, and Charles Herman-Wurmfeld's Reese Witherspoon sequel Legally Blonde 2: Red, White, and Blonde.

Although it will also be released on DVD, surf fans or cinematography buffs and those with Blu capabilities who haven't been scared off from the star post-Fool's Gold or the number of harsh Dude reviews, Blu-ray is the ultimate way to appreciate Davis's gorgeous work. And Anchor Bay Entertainment's superb 2-disc set (although oddly misspelled "2-Disk Special Edition") also includes a digital copy of the film available for compatible PCs, deleted scenes, feature commentary from McConaughey, the theatrical trailer, as well as the complete uncensored 12-Webside Surfer, Dude.

Likewise, on a Blu-ray disc side-note: be sure to watch the previews before the film as Werner Herzog and Woody Harrelson show off their comedic improvisational skills in Zak Penn's uproarious The Grand and in one of the most unspeakably politically incorrect yet hilarious trailers of 2008 for the Eva Longoria-Parker and Jason Biggs comedy Lower Learning, also available from Anchor Bay.

And for a double-feature of "missed it at the multiplex" films featuring some of the Tropic Thunder cast, renters of Surfer, Dude should also pick up the far superior, underrated comic gem Hamlet 2, starring Steve Coogan which sneaked onto shelves last week.

DVD Review: Tropic Thunder-- 2 Disc Director's Cut

Hitting DVD & Blu-Ray on November 18

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Read the Original Theatrical Review

In honor of November 18th's DVD & Blu-ray release of the Ben Stiller's summer comedy Tropic Thunder, I'm offering you an insider's view of the DVD that DreamWorks and Paramount Pictures Home Entertainment were kind enough to send my way. However, before I go into the DVD features, first I'll serve up the first four paragraphs of my original theatrical review of Tropic Thunder, originally published on August 13, 2008.

Tropic Thunder



Director:
Ben Stiller

Former highbrow theatrical director turned filmmaker Damien Cockburn (Steve Coogan) is in trouble. When the explosives expert (Pineapple Express scene stealer Danny McBride) working on his big budget Vietnam epic film debut misinterprets Cockburn’s temper tantrum for a cue, four million dollars in explosives are wasted, everything is blown to smithereens, and the worst thing is that the camera wasn’t even rolling. Unable to control the actors on his set and already one month behind schedule after just five days of shooting, the British thespian is soon punched in the face very hard by a grip, upon orders shouted via webcam by sleazy studio boss Les Grossman (a hilarious and nearly unrecognizable Tom Cruise).

Out of desperation, he turns to Nick Nolte’s Four Leaf Tayback, the former Vietnam soldier who wrote the book they are adapting — not to mention the type soldier who may not have gotten the memo that the war is over. Visibly relishing his role, Nolte’s Tayback is often framed in a corner spouting off sentence fragments and irrational, obscenity-laced anecdotes that frighten and amuse all at the same time. Advising the mild-mannered Brit to get the actors “off the f***in’ grid” and into “the s***,” Cockburn heeds Tayback’s advice. With the hope that improvisational filmmaking will get the movie back on track, he sets up his “own little personal slice of ‘Nam.”

However, shortly after depositing his cast of five diverse leads deep into the heart of the jungle in order to show his pampered actors he’s really running the show, things go terribly, shockingly wrong. And soon enough the cast find themselves in a real life mini-war of their own when instead of guerilla filmmaking, the men become the target of heroin-trafficking guerillas who’ve mistaken them for DEA soldiers (yeah, I didn’t get that either). Obviously, this proves to be much more than the actors can handle, as they’d signed on with their contractual clauses for perks like gift baskets, TiVo, and luxury items, only to find themselves dodging bullets instead.

Heading up the group is Tropic Thunder’s director and co-writer Ben Stiller as Tugg Speedman, a has-been, Rambo-styled action star whose most recent film wherein he played a mentally challenged character — Simple Jack — not only ruined his career but was also named one of the worst films of all time. With his barefooted agent (Matthew McConaughey) behind him, Speedman tries to get back into Hollywood’s spotlight but is worried he’ll be upstaged by his costar, the five time Oscar winner Kirk Lazarus (Robert Downey Jr. channeling Russell Crowe), an Australian method actor so committed to his craft that he underwent skin pigmentation surgery in order to play an African-American for Cockburn’s film..."

Click Here to Read the Entire Review


The 2-Disc Director's Cut DVD

Although it's dubbed the "director's cut," I couldn't honestly tell a distinct difference between the theatrical version of Tropic Thunder with the feature film presented on the first disc of this set. Yet, for true fans of the movie and those interested in filmmaking in general, the 2-Disc set is ideal with Stiller providing enough added hilarity and down and dirty, gritty behind-the-scenes movie-making 101 examples to make it a terrific investment.

Offering audiences the chance to watch the film with two different commentary tracks including one consisting of the more creative and technical side from the filmmakers of Thunder-- the second track is the more free-wheeling DVD commentary offered up by the cast, including Downey who joked in the film that he doesn't break character until he's recorded the DVD commentary.

Also, perhaps to answer the bad press the movie received shortly before its premiere regarding the "Simple Jack" controversy as Stiller's action movie character Tugg Speedman had recently played a mentally challenged man resulting in a few instances in the film where the word "retarded" is bantered about (more to poke fun at Hollywood ego and industry exploitation than anything else)), there is a quality Public Service Announcement added onto Disc 1 wherein the tagline promises that the only "R" word those with intellectual disabilities deserve is "respect." While it feels a bit forced, it's a worthwhile sentiment and actually should've possibly played before the film as one of the many commercials or trailers as opposed to being buried in a separate menu of Thunder's first disc.

However, fans can rejoice in Thunder mania that fills the entirety of the second disc as we discover co-writer, director and star Ben Stiller's passion for his screenplay that dates back twenty years. In "Before the Thunder," Stiller notes that while he was busy making one of his first and most important screen appearances in a bit part in Spielberg's Empire of the Sun, most of his friends were auditioning for the war movies that were incredibly popular in the late 80's such as Platoon and Hamburger Hill. Noting the ridiculousness of actors who shared with him that their two week boot camp really helped them get into character and bond, Stiller became inspired by the absurdity of pampered actors not realizing how very different it is to actually be in a war as opposed to a movie about war and initially toyed with the premise of a group of actors returning from movie boot camp with post-traumatic stress disorder.

Upon realizing that he just couldn't find away to make it work comically, he set it aside until ten years later when he and actor Justin Theroux (Charlies Angels 2, Mulholland Drive) began e-mailing back and forth various scenes they wrote in the hopes of keeping each other laughing. It's easy to get caught up in Stiller's twenty year passion with Thunder's excellently packaged DVD set as we go into each and every extra which run the gamut from standard "pat each other on the back" electronic press kit generic enthusiasm to some truly hilarious and inventive additions including a fake Apocalypse Now/Heart of Darkness styled documentary called "Rain of Madness" which chronicles the fake "movie within the movie" and another similar bonus dubbed "Dispatches from the Edge of Madness."

In numerous candid behind-the-scenes interviews and clips including original videotapes from the auditions and various tests, we discover just how damn funny the film's straight man played by Jay Baruchel actually is as we glimpse the film's epic table reading and the way that Downey managed to just launch into his character head-first in a way that made Baruchel share that, "I hadn't laughed this much since Dick Cheney shot that guy in the face." With Downey admitting that they aren't satirizing Hollywood on the same level as Altman's brilliant Player by joking that "we're kind of destroying any leg [we have] to stand on in the future," in Stiller's lampoon styled "love letter to what we do," we realize just how much effort was put into making the comical film look so professional.

In "The Hot LZ," "Blowing Shit Up," "Designing the Thunder," and more, we witness some of the epic undertakings by Stiller and company, whether it's creating a cinematic compilation mix tape of their favorite war scenes for the epic opening sequence which took three weeks and fifty stuntmen to shoot or gauging the level of explosion offered up by the special effects man who Stiller says may be "slightly insane but in a good way," during the incredibly complicated shoot by veteran 2-time Oscar winning cinematographer John Toll (Legends of the Fall, Braveheart, Thin Red Line).

In an entertaining special feature dedicated to "The Cast of the Thunder" which is broken down by the last name of each actor, the cast members riff on their own characters as well as their cast-mates discussing what must have been a creatively freeing shoot filled with improvisation and laughter as well as interesting surprises as the American Humane Association handler for Bertha the water buffalo that carries Jack Black unexpectedly delivered a baby that they named after the comedic actor.

Also including deleted and extended scenes as well as "full mags," to illustrate the number of choices that were made by Stiller and his editor, we finally discover just what happens to Matthew McConaughey's character at the end of the film and learn that the scene stealing dance by a nearly unrecognizable Tom Cruise was the brainchild of Cruise himself, who impulsively started dancing without music during a makeup test.

Featuring promotional material as well-- one amusing bonus consisted of a great MTV Movie Awards promotional spoof as Stiller, Black and Downey all toy with each other's egos by trying to figure out the best way to sell their movie. While it's nearly impossible to absorb the plethora of features included on the disc or listen to all of the available and optional commentary, the 2-Disc Director's Cut really makes one appreciate Thunder on an entirely different level.

Moreover, it makes one realize just how easy it is to overlook the master craftsmanship behind everything as we're far too busy laughing at the performances to fully appreciate the effects, production design and stunning cinematography that makes it seem nearly as authentic as the films it references, even so much as to set up the DVD menus as though we were getting ready to watch Platoon or Apocalypse Now. Of course, once the movie begins with fake ads for "The Fatties" and "Booty Sweat," we realize we aren't exactly in Oliver Stone territory... but it's always nice to escape the realities of war by laughing at men rushing out to go fake one.